The Elemental Personalities of the Tarot Court Cards

The sixteen court cards of the Tarot are the easiest cards to misunderstand and the hardest cards

to interpret correctly and accurately in practice. These completely Elemental cards can only exist

in the World of Assiah and so their influence cannot be anything but terrestrial and temporal. At

the same time they represent the essential Elements that make up the foundation of physical

awareness and so they also potentially possess an esoteric interpretation.

To understand those two sides to the court cards it is important to understand the two Elemental

mechanisms that work on them to make each one an individual sub-elemental expression. The

first and most obvious is the division of the court cards into their four suits, each corresponding

to an Element. So for Wands the Element is Fire, Cups it is Water, Swords are Air and Disks are

Earth and these Elements are those that divide the tenth Sephirah Malkuth, the Sphere of the

Elements into four quarters. At the same time these Elements are the most manifest reflection of

a greater system of Elemental correspondence, the Four Worlds.

The Four Worlds

The Tree of Life can be divided into four unequal segments that correspond to the conceptual

stages of the development of the Light of Ain Soph Aur , the Limitless Light of the

Negative existence. These four stages are not the Elements but they have the Elements concealed

within them and act as meta-elements that forms the macrocosmic image of creation that is itself

reflected in the microcosm of the individual.

The Four Worlds begin at the top of the Tree of Life with the first emanation from the Ain Soph

Aur, the first Sephirah Kether, the Crown. This perfect unity is the first of the Four Worlds called

Atziluth , the Archetypal World. This World represents the pure creative energy that is

posited against the void from which it issues as its consort and becomes the Great Father AB ,

as it descends into the second World called Briah , the Creative World.

Briah consists of the next two Sephiroth, Chokmah which is the Father and Binah which is the

Great Mother AM who receives the impress of his creative will. These two worlds exist in the

Ideal of the Supernal Trinity of Sephiroth above the Abyss. The Father and Mother here are the

primordial parents of the Actual Existence that lies below the Abyss. This Actual Existence is the

result of the union of the Father and the Mother from which issues the third and fourth Worlds,

Yetzirah the Formative World and Assiah the Material World.

The World of Yetzirah extends from the very end of Binah to the beginning of Malkuth and the

Paths that connect the Sephiroth on the Tree of Life are attributed to this World. Yetzirah

corresponds to the Son and is the active issue of the union of the Father and the Mother, making

the Son an image of the Father but in the Actual World the perfection of creative will is replaced

by the corruption of articulation. Even so, at its core the purity of Atziluth endures within

Yetzirah as the will of the original impetus of the Father to manifest the Light of Ain Soph Aur

in the Sphere of the Elements.

In this way the fulfillment of Yetzirah, and of the Worlds that engendered it, is the World of

Assiah which encompasses the entire physical universe as well as its microcosmic image Man.

Assiah is completely contained in the tenth Sephirah Malkuth, the Kingdom, and is the entirely

passive Daughter that becomes the Mother when she takes the impress of the will of the Son who

thereby becomes the Father. In this way the Daughter gives form to the entire range of the

articulation of the will of the Father and manifests the Light in the Material World of Assiah as

the matter of the four Elements.

Tetragrammaton

Tetragrammaton is the unpronounceable Name of the God of Moses from the Sepher Torah and

its nomenclature meaning a word of four letters; , often pronounced Jehovah, Yahweh or

Yehowah (obviously incorrectly). This name is a symbol of the laws that bind the temporal

material world to its eternal source and it represents the transition through the Four World in

cyclic form. Yod the Father unites with He the Mother to produce Vau the Son and He final

the Daughter. This pair go on to take the places of their parents with the Son becoming his Father

and the Daughter becoming the Mother and thus they have produced their own compound issue

and their Elements become purified by the return to a more archetypal form.

While on the surface this appears to be the same pattern as that which is expressed in the Four

Worlds in fact this is not the case. Their symbolism is similar and related but while the Four

Worlds indicates a linear progression from Nothing to Everything the progression expressed by

Tetragrammaton is a circular cycle that regenerates itself. At the same time it is an expression of

the eternal but in an active form as a counterpoint to the totally passive form of eternity in the

Ain Soph Aur. As a circular and moving expression of eternity it is best expressed as the

circumference of the heavens through which the sun passes to create the seasons, to designate the

four directions and to be the archetype of the Elements.

The Elements and Malkuth, the Kingdom

The Four Worlds and the four letters of the Name Tetragrammaton take on an increasingly

Elemental form as they approach the final Sephirah Malkuth. In the Actual World the first two

Sephiroth below the Abyss, Chesed and Geburah are the Mother and the Father, and so Water

and Fire, respectively and their direct issue is Tiphareth the Solar Son who is Air.

Tiphareth is the center of the World of Yetzirah and the final manifestation of the Light doesn't

occur until Malkuth at the very bottom of the Tree of Life. This is because the Father and Mother

are only implied below the Abyss and so the Son becomes the essential form at the center of the

full expression of the Four World in Assiah, carrying the will of his Father into Yetzirah to be

impressed upon the World of Assiah.

From this spiritual, conceptual Son issues the archetypal Elements as yet without substance,

merely the image of the Father and Mother as well as the spiritual Son. These forms of the

Elements, their essential and conceptual aspects, occupy the next three Sephiroth on the Tree of

Life; Netzach, Hod and Yesod and so they are the ultimate expressions of Yetzirah, the

formative building blocks upon which the material Elements in Assiah are based.

Thus, from the Spiritual Tiphareth issues the fiery Netzach and the watery Hod symbolizing the

departure from pure Self awareness into an awareness of the structure of that self in relation to its

environment. Netzach id the passions and Hod the intellect and from their union, mirroring the

unions of Father and Mother that have occurred above, is the Airy Sephirah Yesod, the intuition

or inner sense of Self. Finally, with these archetypes in place the final issue of the Light

manifests in the Kingdom of Malkuth which makes up the World of Assiah.

The Sephirah Malkuth is the Sphere of the Elements and it corresponds exactly with the World

of Assiah, the Material World. These are the Elements of the four directions of the compass and

of the four winds. These are the material forms of the elements, the physical heat of fire, the

depth of water, the motion of air and the solid stability of earth. These are the Elements that

correspond to Suits of the Tarot and to the dignitaries of the court cards of the Tarot.

The Connection of the Four Worlds, Tetragrammaton and the Elements with the Court

Cards

All of these Elemental concepts are brought together in the symbolism of the court cards. Firstly,

their domain is limited to the World of Assiah by the natures of the characters of the cards

themselves. While the Trump cards represent macrocosmic energies, forces of nature or other

universal concepts, and the small cards represent qualities of the Sephiroth as they are found in

the Sphere of the Elements the court cards symbolize the elements themselves as they appear in

Assiah, as living, self regenerating cycles.

This cyclical nature is the second quality that defines each of the court cards as it corresponds to

Tetragrammaton. The progression of the court cards through their dignitaries of Knight Queen,

Prince and Princess is a microcosm of the cycles of Tetragrammaton that are expressed through

the Tree of Life as a whole and it represents the evolution of the Light in the individual just as its

macrocosmic progenitor does in a universal manner. In this way the actual identity of the court

cards is not linked unbreakably to the age and gender of the individual cards and more than one

court card may indicate a single person even in one spread.

The key to understanding this aspect of the court cards is in their connection to the Four Worlds

which is twofold. The first and most obvious is that the linear progression through the Four

Worlds recalls Tetragrammaton and so the court cards are on the one hand symbols of

progression or growth. The second, less obvious connection but because of the position in the

World of Assiah the more influential one, is the Elemental correspondences of the Four Worlds.

While it isn't so above the Sehiroth of Malkuth, in the Sphere of the Elements the Four Worlds

can finally be connected with their ultimate material forms. In this way, the World of Atziluth

which is the prototype for Fire in Malkuth informs the interpretation of both the Knights and the

suit of Wands. Briah corresponds to Water and so it influences the nature of both the Queens and

the suit of Cups; Yetzirah corresponds to Air and from that it affects both the Princes and the suit

of Swords while Assiah is the Element of Earth and represents the Princesses and the suit of

Disks.

As all of these qualities are restricted to Malkuth because they are Elemental, the cycle that is

expressed as progressing through each of the Elements in Assiah can be considered as an

individual physical microcosm, an expression of Tetragrammaton and so an image of the creator.

But each of us is composed of a balance of all four of these Elements which makes each court

card only one possible facet of any personality. This further compounds the difficulty of

accurately interpreting the identities that are represented by the court cards generally.

The Four Suits and the Court Cards

It is a popular misconception that it is possible to associate a specific personality type to a

specific court card and this is because all of us have each of these sub-elemental expressions in

our own Elemental combination. Similarly, it is common to attribute physical characteristics to

the four suits that reflect their elemental nature as well as to assign gender and age to the

individuals indicated by the court cards but this is also of dubious value in an interpretation for

the same reason. All that can be determined is that in very general terms certain physical

qualities may be able to be assigned to certain of the court cards themselves but that those may or

may not coincide with the actual people that they represent in a divination. It is more accurate to

associate the natures of the court cards to the character of the influence that the individual that

they represent has on the divination.

The Suit of Wands

Court cards from the suit of Wands indicate energy generally coming into the situation. It may be

in the form of an energetic person or in the energy that is expended with people generally. The

elemental qualities associated with Fire are will, force, dominance, aggression, motion and

activity generally. The prototypical fire of Atziluth is a passing force, its movement is single

because it has the objective of unification with its compliment and it is also inarticulate because

it is as yet pure. This makes Wands an indication of a new influence or person but also of an

energy that enters and leaves without endurance.

The Wands are also Yod of Tetragrammaton, the initial letter of the Name that is the original

impetus of the Light to become materially manifest and so the Wands also indicate seminal or

essential energies. The court cards of the Suit of Wands could equally represent energetic people

or the people that are the source of energy that is entering into the divination.

The Suit of Cups

Court cards of the Suit of Cups generally indicate stillness, the cessation of movement entering

into the situation. The World of Briah is the Creative World and it is the source of all of the

forms that will be taken by the archetypal energy of Atziluth yet these are concealed and not yet

brought into actuality. The Cups represent rest from movement and the people indicated by these

court cards could be contemplative, calm and reflective of their environment or they could

indicate a situation that finds its level via the agency of the people that are involved. The

elemental qualities of Water are all passive, receptive and reflective and it receives all of the

energy of Fire.

The Cups are attributed to the letter He of Tetragrammaton, the Mother AM , and is the

completely passive reaction to the action of the Will of the Father AB of Yod. Where the Yod

is seminal the He is gestational and creative. The action of Fire is followed by the inaction of

Water and so the people that are represented by the Cups are passive, contemplative or they may

also represent a period of inaction or of unseen development. At the same time the Cups may

represent a broader, enduring conceptual or evolutionary stage of the development of a situation.

The Suit of Swords

The Swords signal a return to action but this is now an articulate energy as it has developed the

ability to discern between action and inaction. It knows that it is taking action and so it defines

what that energy will be. In this way the Swords represent the issue of Atziluth after it has been

united with Briah to engender a specific form. It is the Mother that gives articulation to the

impetus of the Father's will to create. The result is the division of that will into its components

that make up the intellectual World of Yetzirah, the Formative World. Where the Cups were

conceptual the Swords are scientific and quantifying while the pure energy of the Wands has

been translated into decisiveness and discrimination. This gives the Swords a dual nature that is

reflected in the energy that these cards introduce to a situation.

The Swords are the letter Vau of Tetragrammaton, representing the solar-spiritual principal of

the Son to the cycle, the issue of the union of the Father and the Mother. This Son is the

combination of both of its parents and combines the energy of the Father with the preservative

power of the Mother to engender discernment. The action of the Swords is decisive which the

gestation of the energy behind that action is articulate and for the first time progress has become

linear and logical. For this reason the Swords are connected to the intellect but are more

accurately attributed to the mind making their influence ethereal and elusive. The court cards of

this suit could equally represent intelligent persons or persons using their intelligence and even

different kinds of intelligence. It could even be feasibly interpreted as the body of knowledge

that has been accumulated by a person that has an influence on the divination or as an indication

that knowledge or learning will have a bearing on the prognostication. The dual nature of the

Swords also means that it is possible that one card may be interpreted in more than one way and

this makes the Swords the most difficult of the court cards to interpret accurately.

The Suit of Disks

The most solidly manifest suit is the Disks, often called the coins because it is thought to

represent money. This is rather too specific an interpretation and the Disks actually represent all

matter. The World of Assiah, literally the Material World, indicates the entire Sphere of the

Elements in the final Sephiroth Malkuth. This makes the Disks the fulfillment of the four suits

and so these cards could indicate the completion of the development of the divination just as they

could represent the people that are involved with that ending. The Suit of Disks can also indicate

the physical energy of the material world and so these cards can indicate work that is done or that

is the physical course that the divination is prognosticating. The Disks are also dual in nature as

Earth is the twin of Air and both are the issue of Fire and Water. The dual nature of Earth is not

expressed though because Earth is silent and the Disks are progressively more passive as the

court cards progress through their dignitaries.

The Disks are also the letter He final , an image of the Mother who is He but in an evolved

form; the Daughter is her Mother and more. The Daughter also combines the elements of her

parents into new expressions and is the enduring quality of the Mother in the expression of the

creative will of the Father, the abundance of Earth. There is no articulation in the energy of

Earth, it is indiscriminant in its application of the Father's will and so it is indecisive yet at the

same time it is all pervading as the material manifestation of the Mother, the Great Sea that

personifies the Creative World of Briah.

At the same time the progression has ceased to be linear and it has developed into a regenerative

cycle as the Daughter departs from the Silence of Earth and becomes the Mother with the

impress of the will to create that is made upon her by the Son. All of this is combined in material

form and so these court cards can indicate material influences, labors, the physical body just as it

can also indicate people that are very material or practical. The court cards of the Suit of Disks

may also indicate the energy at the end of a divination or the people that bring that final energy

to the situation but can also be the regenerative energy of the abundance of earth.

The Four Dignitaries

Just as the suits are indicative of the elementary energies of the court cards the dignitaries

represent their place in the cycle of Tetragrammaton. This gives the court cards the nuance of

relativity as the Knights which correspond to Yod indicate the beginning of a movement while

the Queens which represent He are the continuation of that movement, the Princes are Vau

and articulate the energy that is in motion to become the Princess which is He final , the

physical manifestation of the energy in the World of Assiah. In this way the court cards can act

as indicators that mark the stage of the development that a divination has reached.

Because they are attributed to the Elemental suits of the Tarot the court cards must exist in the

Sphere of the Elements and so they can have physical characteristics attributed to them. First and

foremost is gender which is indicated in the titles of the dignitaries while secondly a generational

age is implied by the familial hierarchy of the ranks. In theory this indicates that Knights are

older males, Queens older females, Princes are young men and Princesses are young females or

children (which is why the Princesses are often called Pages). While this might generally be so it

is always more complex in practice and should not be adhered to dogmatically. It is possible for

a young man to be practical and reliable as is traditionally attributed to the Prince of Disks and to

have the pale complexion and dark eyes that are traditionally attributed to the Prince of Cups.

The dignitary may also indicate an emotional or an intellectual age so that a mature person with a

young emotional age may be indicated by a Prince or Princess while a young person that is

particularly learned may appear as a Knight or a Queen. Physical age is not a standard measure

of the maturity of the individual and the hierarchy of the court cards represents the hierarchy of

Tetragrammaton not the physical age of the father and the Mother but the relative place in the

linear progression. As such the court cards may also indicate generational difference between

people that are indicated in the divination.

The natures of the Elements themselves also inform the interpretation of the dignitaries as they

correspond to the Elements that are attributed to the letters of Tetragrammaton so that the

Knights are the fiery court cards, the Queens are the watery court cards, the Princes are the Airy

court cards and the Princesses are the Earthy court cards. As these are essential qualities within a

physical environment they must be Yetzirac or internal and conceptual and so they can indicate

mental or emotional states that are a part of the divination. At the same time these Elements are

traditionally held to influence the physical appearance of the people that are indicated by the

cards so that the Wands have fiery complexions with blonde or red hair, Cups have pale

complexions with darker hair, Swords are fair skinned with brown hair and Disks are

traditionally swarthy or olive skinned with dark hair and eyes.

The Four Knights

The Four Knights correspond to Yod of Tetragrammaton as well as to Atziluth and to the

Element Fire. They represent pure energy before it is expended but without endurance before it

moves on or is spent. The Knights correspond to beginnings and are the first sub-elemental issue

of the Aces, the impetus for the root powers of the Elements to progress through the four worlds

towards fulfillment. The singleness of will of the Knights makes their energy commanding and

domineering and in its purest state it is irresistible as it is True Will.

On a mundane level the Knights represent mature males or people with executive authority in a

divination. The rank of the card may also be an indication of the respect that is shown to the

person that it indicates. Knights also generally indicate a passing force that influences a situation

or that marks the beginning of a new direction.

The Four Queens

The four Queens correspond to He of Tetragrammaton as well as to the World of Briah and the

Element Water. The Queens represent energy of Atziluth after it has been expended and has left

its enduring impression. The Water of the Queens is the Great Sea of Binah that has within it the

potential for every possible expression of Atziluth but without any comprehension. The Queens

are the preservation of the root powers of the Elements that makes them enduring and that was

begun in the Knights. The energy of the Queens is all encompassing to balance the irresistible

force of the Knights and to transmute it into the issue of their union.

Traditionally the Queens represent mature females or matriarchs who are the holders of practical

power in a divination. Again the rank may be an indication of the level of respect shown to an

individual that it represents but it may also be an indication of their enduring influence on the

situation. Queens indicate a quietly powerful yet calm or peaceful influence in a situation and

may also mark the continuation of a course of action or sequence of events.

The Four Princes

Corresponding to Vau of Tetragrammaton the four Princes are attributed to the World of

Yetzirah and to the Element Air as well. The Princes are the definition and the articulation of the

energy of Atziluth after it has issued from the Great Sea and the Princes govern the tree of Life

from the end of Binah to the beginning of Malkuth, making up the comprehensible portion of the

Macroprosopus, the Greater Countenance. Not only do the Princes represent the individual

articulations of the Elements but they are also the means by which the individual articulates his

perception of the universe. The Princes articulate the root powers of the Elements by dividing

them into their kinds and classes bringing individuality to each of the forms that issue from the

union of Fire and Water.

The Princes are said to represent young males but usually not children but they may also indicate

individuals who contribute their specialist knowledge to the divination. Their power is

theoretical and cannot directly manipulate the material world and the influence of the Prince can

be either enduring or brief depending upon the level of interest that exists. Princes are indicative

of decisions that call the intelligence and discernment into operation.

The Four Princesses

The final dignitaries, the Princesses, correspond to He final of Tetragrammaton and is

attributed to the Material World of Assiah and also to the Element Earth. The Princesses are the

material end of the energy that originated in Atziluth fully manifested in Assiah, the clay of the

earth. The Princesses are the result of the articulation of the Princes and define the material

influences in a divination. The World of Assiah is the Microprosopus, the Lesser Countenance

and so the Princesses are the image of not only the Princes but of the Queens and the Knights as

well, as they are the fulfillment of the cycle of the manifestation of the Light in the World of

Assiah that is represented by the entire familial hierarchy.

The Princesses traditionally show young females and children but may also indicate the

Elemental aspects of the physical body or of the material world around the divination. The

Princesses are completely silent and inert and only receive the articulated impression of the

Princes and are redeemed by them. As such the Princesses may indicate the ultimate end of an

energy that influences the situation or a result that materializes the evolution of the energy in the

World of Assiah.

Interpreting the Sixteen Court Cards of the Tarot

The sixteen court cards are entirely Elemental and exist totally within the Sephiroth Malkuth, the

Sphere of the Elements and so in the World of Assiah, the Material World. Each of the four

Elemental suits has four Elemental dignitaries to make sixteen sub-elemental variations. Each of

the court cards corresponds to one quarter or one of the Elemental quarters of the Sephiroth

Malkuth and forms the Four Worlds of that Elemental Tree of Life in the Sphere of the Elements.

This makes each of the court cards a sub-elemental signification within the Element of the suit to

which it belongs.

Knights are Fire, Queens are Water, Princes are Air and Princesses are Earth; and by combining

these with the Elements of the suits, Fire for Wands, Water for Cups, Air for Swords and Earth

for Disks, the sub-elemental attributions for each court card can be determined. This gives the

sixteen court cards a natural order from the Fire of Fire to the Earth of Earth that segments the

progression through the Four Worlds in an articulate linear form. Whereas the small cards

represent the Elemental cycle of Tetragrammaton as environmental forces, the court cards are the

progression of the Elements as material beings.

Knight of Wands- The Lord of the Flame and the Lightning, King of the Spirits of Fire

The Knight of Wands is the Fire of Fire and represents pure action, energy and movement. He is

a mature male who is forceful and domineering although his influence may be fleeting. A fiery

temperament and perhaps an overbearing or cruel attitude may be divined if the Knight of Wands

is ill dignified. The Knight of Wands has a powerful physical presence and his feature are fair or

ruddy with blonde or red hair. He is energetic, rapid and direct but easily diverted and possibly

ineffective.

Queen of Wands- Queen of the Thrones of Flame

The Queen of Wands is the Water of Fire and represents enduring force or action but as Water is

the end of the movement of Fire this energy is balanced and still. The Queen of Wands is a

dominant female of strong opinions and enduring will power. She accepts the direction of the

King of Wands and carries the energy through into effective action. She is possessive and has a

calm authority but reacts to opposition with determination and even violence. The Queen of

Wands is a fair woman of enough maturity to be self confident. Traditionally she has blue eyes

and blonde or red hair.

Prince of Wands- The Prince of the Chariot of Fire

The Prince of Wands is the Air of Fire and represents the articulation of the will of the Knight

into conceptual form. The decisiveness of the Prince is combined with the pure energy of the

Wands and so he is swift and decisive but also bold and even rash. The Prince of Wands is

vigorous but can also be violent, generous but also critical, quick to anger but equally quick to

forgive and forget. The Prince of Wands has a fair complexion, although he may be freckled, and

usually is portrayed as having blue eyes and blonde hair.

Princess of Wands- Princess of the Shining Flame, The Rose of the Palace of Fire

The Princess of Wands is the Earth of Fire and so she manifests Fire in the World of Assiah, her

domain. She is material action incarnate, always ready to take on the task at hand but with the

suddenness and potentially passing energy characteristic of the wands. The Princess of Wands is

impulsive and enthusiastic but ill dignified she can become facile and spiteful. The Princess of

Wands is a very fair young female or child with red hair in most traditional descriptions.

Knight of Cups- The Lord of the Waves and the Waters, King of the Hosts of the Sea

The Knight of Cups is the Fire of Water and the beginning of the progression of Tetragrammaton

in the World of Briah. The energy of the Knight is expressed as the passive Cup so his influence

is enduring but lacks force and direction. It is the easy energy of amiability or friendship and it

finds expression in acts of pleasure. The Knight of Cups is a dominating figure but as a loved

figure or favored friend. The Knight of Cups is usually described as having pale skin perhaps

with a natural rosiness while his hair is sandy blonde to light brown and he has hazel or green

eyes.

Queen of Cups- Queen of the Thrones of the Waters

The Queen of Cups is the Water of Water and she is completely passive and still for there is a

total absence of energy present. She is completely reflective and receptive to any impulse

whatsoever and this makes her seem serene but she is in fact merely undisturbed. If she is

agitated she can become fractious and scattered in her responses. The Queen of Cups is a

maternal figure, nurturing rather than domineering like the Queen of Wands. Her personality is

deep and holds impressions enduringly but may also distort them. The Queen of Cups has a pale,

almost colorless skin tone which may take on the colors of those around her. She is completely

feminine with gray blue eyes and platinum or ash colored hair.

Prince of Cups- Prince of the Chariot of the Waters

The Prince of Cups is the Air of Water and represents the ability of Water to find its level, its

elasticity and also its volatility. The Prince of Cups represents the power of steam and is

symbolized as boiling water and so it can either be practical or it can be unpredictable and

hazardous. The Prince of Cups is subtlety, craft and cunning personified and can present one

image that conceals its opposite beneath itself. He is traditionally described as having pale, fair

skin, dark eyes and sandy brown hair.

Princess of Cups- Princess of the Waters and the Lotus of the Palace of the Floods

The Princess of Cups is the Earth of Water and she manifests the creative energy of Briah in the

World of Assiah. She is the power of Water to bring fertility to the Sphere of the Elements and

her movements flow through the material world always finding a graceful and easy path. The

Princess of Cups is elegant and gracious but she is also given to becoming immersed within

herself and lost in her interior worlds of thoughts and dreams or even into melancholy and

depression. The Princess of Cups is traditionally shown as a very pale young female with gray

blue eyes and ash blond to brown hair.

Knight of Swords- Lord of the Winds and Breezes, King of the Spirits of the Air

The Knight of Swords is the Fire of Air, the most active volatile part of Air, swift moving yet

precise and balanced and possibly even carelessly destructive. The speed with which the Knight

of Swords moves requires skill and deftness for precise control. He has a passing fierceness that

doesn't have time to develop before he has moved on and ill dignified he may be directionless

and lack relevance in the divination. Traditionally the Knight of Swords is fair skinned with gray

or hazel eyes and brown or platinum hair.

Queen of Swords- Queen of the Thrones of Air

The Queen of Swords is the Water of Air and so it represents an enduring and articulating

energy. The Queen of Swords is an intelligent perceptive mature minded female that is capable

of making effective decisions. She is capable of single mindedness and can use her intellect as a

weapon but is also intensely fair minded and insightful as well as practical and empathic. She is

usually depicted as being either blonde or dark haired with blue eyes and a fair complexion.

Prince of Swords- Prince of the Chariots of the Winds

The Prince of Swords is the Air of Air and as such he is almost entirely intellectual. The

articulate mind is given full reign in this card which represents a mature minded but youthful

male who is noted for being intelligent. Capable of making informed decisions the Prince of

Swords can be severe, uncaring and unforgiving but never motivated by personal predilections.

Knowledge is a precious commodity to the Prince of Swords who relishes learning as much as

teaching others. He is traditionally represented as having pale fair skin, brown eye and brown or

blonde hair.

Princess of Swords- Princess of the Rushing Winds, Lotus of the Palace of Air

The Princess of Swords is the Earth of Air, the most practical articulation of energy and

personifies wisdom and common sense. The Princess of Swords is able to comprehend the

material world effectively and can make effective decisions based on her acquired knowledge of

it. She is usually described as having pale fair skin with brown eyes and brown or sandy hair.

Knight of Disks- Lord of the Wild and Fertile Land, King of the Spirits of Earth

The Knight of Disks is the Fire of earth and the beginning of the cycle of Tetragrammaton in the

World of Assiah. His energy is entirely material and yet he is without any comprehension or

craft in expending that energy. He is dull, heavy, methodical and often plodding but his energy is

more enduring than any of the other Knights. When cornered they may become defensive and

can be aggressive if they get out of their depth. The Knight of Disks is usually portrayed as

having a robust physique with olive or swarthy skin and brown or black eyes.

Queen of Disks- Queen of the Thrones of Earth

The Queen of Disks is the Water of Earth and so the most enduring and creative force in the

World of Assiah. She is the source of the fertility of the earth and her energy is practical and

methodical. Her endurance and practicality make her a diligent and efficient worker but more by

instinct than by design or forethought. She is maternal and generous, caring and understanding

but ill dignified she can be shallow and dull. The Queen of Disks is traditionally described as

having olive skin with dark hair and brown eyes.

Prince of Disks- Prince of the Chariot of Earth

The Prince of Disks is the Air of Earth and so he is the most articulate energy in the World of

Assiah. The Prince of Disks is a practical and trustworthy manager who may lack scholarly

knowledge but makes up for it in his practical knowledge of his world. He can be ingenious with

things but at the same time finds that he is isolated from other people and while he may be slow

to draw conclusions he arrives at them by sound means. The Prince of Disks is traditionally

depicted with olive skin, dark hair and brown eyes.

Princess of Disks- Princess of the Echoing Hills, Rose of the Palace of Earth

The Princess of Disks is the Earth of Earth and so she is the most material part of the World of

Assiah. As the consummate image of Earth she is serene and silent completely fulfilled and

prepared for the union with her consort that will make her into her mother. She has within herself

the complete course of the development of the Light through the Four Worlds and so she is ready

to begin the cycle anew. The Princess of Disk is a virginal, calm, contemplative young female

whose stability is very hard to upset while her demeanor is pure, patient and understanding. She

is traditionally olive skinned with dark eyes and dark hair but she may also be blonde.